Chengdu

Just a few more words about what Chengdu has been like since I'm in this hotel and I have internet access:

So we haven't made it to Tibet because we don't have original copies of documentation from the Chinese government authorizing our entry into Tibet. Luckily, for once, it seems that things are on track. We had Lhasa ship the original documents for about 5 USD and we received it in about six hours. We are set for tomorrow if everything goes as planned.

The driver of the hotel shuttle from the airport to the aforementioned hotel was interestingly in cahoots with every single business in town, it seems. In fact, while driving the hotel shuttle, he recommended for us to to go to a different hotel. "You know, don't tell my bosses, but my friend has a great hotel that you guys can live in. Its cheaper and bigger for sure."

Later on, we asked him to recommend a good place to eat local Sichuan food. He maintained that there was no good place to eat around here since it was the boondocks, far away from Chengdu proper. We asked him to take us to the airport instead. We drive for a while and he pulls over in front of a little restaurant. "Oh yeah, this place is great, my friend owns it." Good man.

After dinner, we walked to the airplane cargo service to pick up our documentation. The cargo service involved walking down a narrow, unpaved road for about 45 minutes or so. We got a rickashaw man (friendly guy) to carry us about halfway for 4 yuan, which is a measly amount: 70 cents. We saw people digging through trash on the way back for copper to sell or other odds and ends. We wasted about 1000-2000 yuan the past three days.